King Herod’s Death Year Controversy

Posted on January 9, 2018November 26, 2023 by K.B. Vogelman

King Herod’s death occurred shortly after the birth of Jesus of Nazareth making it the lynch pin date to determine his birth year. Referenced in the Nativity accounts of both Matthew and Luke, Jesus of Nazareth was born during the lifetimes of three historical personages – Augustus, Herod and Quirinius.^[1]

Standardized calendars during Antiquity do not exist; instead, timelines and dates are linked to well-known historical events. Establishing the date of Herod’s death requires piecing together such clues as the reigns of Tiberius, King Herod and his sons; the Battle of Actium; the Jewish religious calendar; astronomy data, Josephus’ accounts, etc.

Adding another level of complexity is “inclusive reckoning,” the question of whether a partial year was counted as a full year in historical references. The unsettled question instills a plus or minus factor of at least a year.^[2]

Herod’s death is marked by bookend events of a lunar eclipse and the Passover that Spring based on printed copies of the Antiquities of the Jews by historian Josephus. He wrote that Philip began his regional Judean reign in the “twentieth year of Tiberius” when his father died, then ruled for 37 years.^[3]

“…Philip, Herod’s brother, departed this life, in the twentieth year of the reign of Tiberius after he had been tetrarch of Trachonitis, and Gaulonitis, and of the nation of Bataneana also thirty-seven years.” – Josephus^[4]

Tiberius began his reign in 14 AD, then adding 20 years lands in 34 AD to establish the year of Philip’s death. Subtracting 37 years of Philip’s rule backdates to 3 BC. Since a partial lunar eclipse occurred on March 13^th, 4 BC, this year becomes the commonly accepted secular year for King Herod’s death.^[5]

King Herod’s death year controversy begins with some experts the questioning the timeline between the eclipse and Passover – could all these events have occurred in the span of just 4 weeks if Herod died in 4 BC…

Eclipse to Passover Events

A gripping scene in Jerusalem begins with rumors that Herod had died. Incited insurrectionists removed the long-hated sacrilege of Rome’s golden eagle insignia Herod had mounted over the entrance gate.^[6]

Unfortunately for the insurrectionists, the King was not yet dead. In response, Herod had the High Priest removed from office and 40 insurrectionists burned alive.^[7] That very night was marked by a lunar eclipse and Josephus describes in detail the events that took place before the upcoming Passover.

Herod’s loathsome protruding bowels and gangrenous groin condition worsened. His physicians recommended therapy in the warm baths of Callirrhoe, about a 2-days journey from Jerusalem bypassing his palace in Jericho across the Jordan River. Gaining no relief from the warm springs, his physicians then recommended soaking in a full vat of oil.^[8]

Treatments failed and Herod welcomed the relief that death would bring. Preparing for the final chapter in his life, the King sent letters throughout Judea summoning all the “principal men” to Jericho:

“all the principal men of the entire Jewish nation, wheresoever they lived, should be called to him…a great number that came, because the whole nation was called, and all men heard of this call, and death was the penalty of such as should despise the epistles.” – Josephus ^[9]

Misery overcame the King who decided to hasten the inevitable by suicide with a kitchen carving knife. His cousin saw what was about to happen, grabbed the King’s hand and began screaming.^[10]

Echoing screams throughout the halls of the palace were misinterpreted that Herod had died touching off a great wailing lamentation. Antipater, Herod’s imprisoned eldest son, believed a twist of fate had now posited the kingdom into his grasp.

Antipater promised his jailer fortunes to release him immediately. Instead, the jailer informed Herod who became enraged, beat his head and ordered his son to be promptly executed.^[11]

Herod died 5 days later after Antipater’s execution.^[12] News of the King’s death spread across Judea and to other nations.

International dignitaries and top military personnel including centurions, captains and officers; and full regiments of the Thracians, Germans, Galatians and Gauls all outfitted in full battle gear traveled to the King’s funeral in Jericho. Meanwhile, a funeral bier was built of gold embroidered by “very precious stones of a great variety” and lined with purple material “of various contexture.”

After the funeral, an elaborate procession to Herodium for the King’s interment took many more days. Following the King’s burial was a 7-day morning period, then a feast was given for the people of Judea before the Passover.^[13]

Death year calculations

Consultant and Biblical hobbyist, David Beyer, compared the 1544 Gutenberg printings of Antiquities used to determine the 4 BC date to two dozen older, handwritten manuscripts predating Gutenberg. He discovered all older handwritten Antiquities manuscripts said that Philip died in the 22^nd year of Tiberius, not the 20^th year.^[14] This discovery changes the traditional secular year of Herod’s death to the 2-1 BC timeframe.

Josephus’ own accounts in Antiquities of the Jews and Wars of the Jews each back-up Beyer. In Antiquities, Josephus states in another entry that Tiberius died after serving as Caesar “twenty-two years, five months and three days,” historically dating to early 36 AD placing Herod’s death in 1 BC.^[15]

Wars marked the Battle of Actium in the 7^th year of Herod’s reign. The Battle of Actium is academically recognized as occurring in the year 31 BC. Josephus wrote that Herod served for 37 years. Simple math backdates the beginning of Herod’s reign to 38 BC who then reigned 37 years thereby again placing Herod’s death in 1 BC.

Agrippa traveled to Rome a year before the death of Tiberius in 36 AD. After saying to Caligula (Caius/Gaius) in a carriage ride that he wished Tiberius would die, the carriage driver told Tiberius who the had Agrippa thrown into prison. Six months later with Tiberius’ death his successor, Caligula, gave Philip’s tetrarchy to Agrippa in 37 AD.^[16]Once again, the year of Herod’s death reckons to 1 BC.

Historian expert Gerard Gertoux’s use of a different calculation method arrived at similar results. Since Herod was 70-years old when he died, Gertoux determined his death occurred sometime between April, 2 BC, and March, 1 BC.^[17]

Changing the date of Herod’s death to 1 BC poses a second question – what about the lunar eclipse referenced by Josephus marking the final days of King Herod? NASA lunar eclipse data for Jerusalem reveals that on January 9-10, 1 BC, a full lunar eclipse occurred. Passover that year was observed on April 6^th, twelve and half weeks later allowing eight additional weeks for the events described by Josephus to occur.^[18]

By comparison, NASA data for Jerusalem shows only a partial, less-than-half lunar eclipse occurred on March 13^th, 4 BC, used to support the secular 4 BC timeline.^[19] Passover that year fell on April 10^th, four weeks later.^[20]

Question

Historical records and archeological discoveries along with astronomy data point to the death of Herod in the 1-2 BC time frame. Did Herod’s death actually occur in 1 BC or the traditionally accepted year of 4 BC?

Updated July 23, 2023.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

REFERENCES:

[1] Matthew 2. Luke 2.
[2] Gertoux. “Dating the Death of Herod.” pp 3-4. Maier, Paul L. The New Complete Works of Josephus. Trans. William Whiston. Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications. 1999. Dissertation 5, Appendix #38. Google Books. n.d. <http://books.google.com/books?id=kyaoIb6k2ccC&lpg=PP1&dq=the%20complete%20works%20of%20josephus&pg=PP1#v=onepage&q&f=false > Ramsay. Was Christ Born in Bethlehem? Chapter 11 & end note. Jachowski, Raymond. Academa.Edu. “The Death of Herod the Great and the Latin Josephus: Re-Examining the Twenty-Second Year of Tiberius.” n.d. <https://www.academia.edu/19833193/The_Death_of_Herod_the_Great_and_the_Latin_Josephus_Re_Examining_the_Twenty_Second_Year_of_Tiberius>
[3] Josephus. Antiquities of the Jews. Book XVII, Chapter XII; Book XVIII, Chapters V. Bunson, Matthew. Encyclopedia of the Roman Empire. “Galilee; Judaea.” 2002. <https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816045624> Jachowski. Academa.Edu. “The Death of Herod the Great and the Latin Josephus: Re-Examining the Twenty-Second Year of Tiberius.”
[4] Josephus. Antiquities of the Jews. Book XVIII, Chapters IV.6.
[5] Whiston. The Works of Flavius Josephus, the Learned and Authentic Jewish Historian.” 1850. p 349 footnote. <https://books.google.com/books?id=e0dAAAAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&hl=en#v=snippet&q=349&f=false> Bernegger, P.M. “Affirmation of Herod’s Death in 4 B.C.” Journal of Theological Studies. 1983. Vol. 34, no 2, pp 526-531, <http://www.redatedkings.com/postings/Bernegger.pdf> Schurer, Emil. A History of the Jewish People in the Time of Jesus Christ. 1890. Volume 1, pp 464-465, footnote 165. <http://books.google.com/books?id=BRynO3W9FPcC&pg=PP1#v=snippet&q=Tiberius&f=false> Doig, Kenneth F. New Testament Chronology. 1990. Chapter 4. <http://nowoezone.com/NT_Chronology.htm
[6] Josephus, Flavius. Antiquities of the Jews. Book VII, Chapters VI – IX. The Complete Works of Josephus. 1850. <http://books.google.com/books?id=e0dAAAAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false> Josephus, Flavius. Wars of the Jews. Chapter XXXIII; Book II, Chapter I. The Complete Works of Josephus. 1850. <http://books.google.com/books?id=e0dAAAAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false
[7] Josephus. Antiquities. Book XVII, Chapter VI, VII. Josephus. Wars. Book I, Chapter XXXIII.
[8] Josephus. Antiquities. Book XVII, Chapter VI. Josephus. Wars. Book I, Chapter XXXIII. “Tulul Abul Alayiq (Herodian Jericho) – Jericho.” This Week in Palestine. Issue No. 102, October 2006. <http://www.thisweekinpalestine.com/details.php?id=1948&ed=132&edid=132> “Callirrhoe.” Jewish Encyclopedia. 2011. <http://jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/3933-callirrhoe> “Map of New Testament Israel.” Bible-history.com. Map. n.d. <http://www.bible-history.com/geography/ancient-israel/israel-first-century.html>
[9] Josephus. Antiquities. Book XVII, Chapter VI.5. CR Josephus. Wars. Book I, Chapter XXXIII.
[10] Josephus. Antiquities. Book XVII, Chapter VII. Josephus. Wars. Book I, Chapter XXXIII.
[11] Josephus. Antiquities. Book XVII, Chapter VII. Josephus. Wars. Book I, Chapter XXXIII.
[12] Josephus. Antiquities. Book XVII, Chapter VI-VII. Josephus. Wars. Book I, Chapter XXXIII.
[13] Josephus. Antiquities. Book XVII, Chapters VII-VIII. Josephus. Wars. Book I, Chapter XXXIII; Book II, Chapter I. Whiston. The Works of Flavius Josephus, the Learned and Authentic Jewish Historian.” 1850. p 450, footnote. <https://books.google.com/books?id=e0dAAAAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&hl=en#v=snippet&q=349&f=false >; “Highways and Roads of Palestine.” 2017. Map. Bible-history.com. <http://www.bible-history.com/geography/ancient-israel/israel-first-century.html > San José, Juan Antonio Revilla. “On the Year of Herod’s Death.” A partial translation from “La Fecha de Muerte de Herodes y La Estrella de Belén.” 1999. Astrology of the New Centaurs. <;href=”http://www.expreso.co.cr/centaurs/steiner/herod.html”> Smallwood, E. Mary. The Jews Under Roman Rule: From Pompey to Diocletian. 2^nd Ed. 1981. p 104, footnote 158. <http://books.google.com/books?id=jSYbpitEjggC&lpg=PA151&ots=VWqUOinty4&dq=census%20Syria%20Rome&pg=PP1#v=onepage&q&f=false>; Reinhold, Roy A. “Other Scholarship Proving the Exact Date of Birth of Yeshua (Jesus), part 5.” Codes in the Bible. 2001. <http://www.ad2004.com/Biblecodes/articles/yeshuabirth5.html “Jesus of Nazareth.” Jewish Encyclopedia. 2011. <http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/8616-jesus-of-nazareth> Beyer, David W. “Josephus Reexamined: Unraveling the Twenty-Second Year of Tiberius.” 1998. p 88. Chronos, Kairos, Christos II. Ed. Jerry Vardaman. <http://books.google.com/books?id=mWnYvI5RdLMC&lpg=PP1&dq=isbn%3A0865545820&pg=PA85#v=snippet&q=beyer&f=false> Gertoux, Gerard. “Dating the death of Herod.” 2015 Academia.edu. <http://www.academia.edu/2518046/Dating_the_death_of_Herod /a>
[14] Beyer. “Josephus Reexamined.” pp 86-87, 90-93, 95-96. Josephus. Antiquities. Book XVIII, Chapter II. 2. Josephus. Wars. Book II, Chapter IX.1, 6. Wolfram, Chuck. “The Herodian Dynasty.” 2004. <http://web.archive.org/web/20151013221102/http://freepages.history.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~cwolfram/herod Martin, Ernest L. The Star of Bethlehem – The Star That Astonished the World. 2^nd Ed. 2003. Chapter 13. A.S.K. (Associates for Scriptural Knowledge. <://web.archive.org/web/20170917115234/http://www.askelm.com/star/star015.htm> Josephus. Antiquities. Book XVIII, Chapter VI.6-8, 10. Jachowski. Academa.Edu. “The Death of Herod the Great and the Latin Josephus: Re-Examining the Twenty-Second Year of Tiberius.”
[15] Josephus. Antiquities. Book XVIII, Chapter II. 2; Chapter VI.5. Josephus. Wars. Book I, Chapter XXXIII.8.
[16] Josephus. Antiquities. Book XVIII, Chapter VI.10. Josephus. Wars. Book II, Chapter IX.6. “Augustus.” UNRV History |The Roman Empire. United Nations of Roma Victrix. 2017. <http://www.unrv.com/fall-republic/augustus.php> “Did Caesar and Cleopatra really have a son?” The Ancient Standard. 2010. <http://ancientstandard.com/2010/12/03/did-caesar-and-cleopatra-really-have-a-son
[17] Josephus. Antiquities. Book XV, Chapter V, Book XVII, Chapters VI – Chapter VIII. Josephus. Wars. Book I, Chapter XXXIII. “Actium (31 BCE).” Livius.org. Ed. Jona Lendering. 2019. <https://www.livius.org/articles/battle/actium-31-bce> “King Herod the Great.” Livius.org. 2017. <http://www.livius.org/he-hg/herodians/herod_the_great01.html> “The Actium Project.” New World Encyclopedia. The University of South Florida and the Greek Ministry of Culture. Dir. William M. Murray. Research Project. 1997. <http://luna.cas.usf.edu/~murray/actium/brochure.html> Chesser, Preston. “The Battle of Actium.” Ohio State University. 2002. <http://ehistory.osu.edu/articles/battle-actium> Gertoux. “Dating the Death of Herod.” pp 6, 9, 11. “HEROD I. (surnamed the Great).” Jewish Encyclopedia. 2011. <http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/7598-herod-i> Villalba i Varneda, Pere. The Historical Method of Flavius Josephus. 1986. p14. <http://books.google.com/books?id=kdUUAAAAIAAJ&lpg=PA14&ots=2ek7SgCy2c&dq=josephus%2C%20battle%20of%20actium%2C%20herod&pg=PA14#v=onepage&q=josephus,%20battle%20of%20actium,%20herod&f=false> Bernegger. “Affirmation of Herod’s Death in 4 B.C.” San José, Juan Antonio Revilla. “On the Year of Herod’s Death.” Pages 14, 140. “World History 50-0 BC.” HistoryCentral.com. MultiEducator, Inc. n.d. <http://www.historycentral.com/dates/50bc.html>
[18] Espenak. NASA Eclipse Website. Asia and Asia Minor – Jerusalem, Israel. Century Selection -0001 – 0100. Espenak, Fred. “Six Millennium Catalog of Phases of the Moon.” NASA Eclipse Website. n.d. “Phase years Table: -0099 – 0000.” <https://archive.is/UsEwe> Kidger, Mark R. “The Date of Passover 11BC – 10AD.” <http://www.observadores-cometas.com/cometas/Star/Passover.html> Reinhold. “Other Scholarship Proving the Exact Date of Birth of Yeshua (Jesus), part 5.”
[19] Espenak, Fred. NASA Lunar Eclipse Website. 2007. Asia and Asia Minor – Jerusalem, Israel; Century Selection -0001 – 0100. <https://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/JLEX/JLEX-AS.html
[20] Martin. The Star of Bethlehem. Chapter 13. Bernegger. “Affirmation of Herod’s Death in 4 B.C.”

The Magi’s Provocation of King Herod

Posted on November 26, 2017August 18, 2023 by K.B. Vogelman

The Magi’s Provocation of King Herod

Arriving in Jerusalem, the Magi had been traveling on a month’s long quest to find the newborn King of the Jews.^[1] They knew to start searching somewhere in Judea and it made perfect sense to start in Jerusalem with the King of Judea – Herod.

Immediately the Magi gained direct access to the King, their reputation as Magi making that possible. The first words spoken by the Magi to Herod in Matthew’s Nativity account set the stage in the palace:

^{MT 2:2} “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews?” _{(NASB, NKJV)}

No doubt, it was shocking news to the reigning king who knew nothing about this royal birth. After all, this child certainly was not Herod’s son. Qualifying their revelation, the Magi explained how they knew their conclusion was true saying:

^{MT 2:2} “For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship him.” _(NKJV)

Now the second shock wave – they came to worship this newborn King of the Jews! No one worshiped the great Herod, yet these Magi traveled hundreds of miles from a foreign land emphasizing their personal conviction of what they had observed – what child would be worthy of such worship? The Magi left the palace without getting an answer.

All of Jerusalem was “troubled” by the news, translated from Matthew’s Greek text word tarasso meaning “to stir or agitate (roil water).”^[2]Stirring the pot tends to cause people to act in peculiar ways. Maybe, too, it was their unusual arrival by a conspicuous caravan of camels; their foreign grandiose attire; or they were regarded as kings from Persia.^[3]

News from the Magi certainly shook things up undoubtedly getting the attention of everyone in the palace. Servants came from among the general population where they still had family and friends not to mention that throughout history palaces of kings and queens notoriously have been unable to hold their secrets. Herod’s family was no exception, scandalously known for their loose lips.

Good gossip is just too hard to keep a secret. A newborn king of the Jews – who was his father if it wasn’t Herod? A child worthy of worship by the reputed king-makers? Could he even be the promised Messiah? Now this was newsworthy!

Word about a new king undoubtedly raised hopes, yet at the same time, it was just as troubling – would the new king be worse than Herod or hopefully a good king? Regardless, it would still be years before this new king would begin his reign.

For any king, especially with the personality profile of Herod, this whole affair, whether true or not, would be an embarrassment and no king should ever be embarrassed. As the story unfolds, the King came to quickly view this child’s birth as a real threat that must be dealt with such as Herod had done many times before using whatever means necessary.^[4]

Processing in his mind the Magi’s alarming news, after the Magi left the palace, the King immediately assembled “all the chief priests and scribes of the people.”^[5] Not just a select few – the King was leaving no stone unturned.

Making it clear he believed the Magi’s proclamation, he asked the Jewish religious experts to determine “where the Christ was to be born.”^[6] It was not a question of if … it was a 2-fold conclusion.

Herod used the Greek word, Christos, translated as Christ, the Messiah, and asked where he was to be born? The consensus response of these Jewish religion experts: “In Bethlehem of Judea” citing the prophecy of Micah.^[7]

Up to this point, the actual appearance of the star witnessed by the Magi astronomers had been only incidental information. Had the star been the most attention-getting news from the Magi, a cynical Herod would have been expected to question it, even scoff at it – he didn’t. It was a detail; however, that did not pass his attention.

Matthew does not say Herod was unaware of the star event – it can only be said that he did not know when it had occurred. Events in the sky would likely have been a relatively petty matter to the King prior the Magi’s visit, especially considering his bigger political problems in the kingdom, with Rome, and his scheming family affairs.

Upon hearing of Micah’s prophecy, his focus changed. No star was mentioned in Micah’s prophecy nor recorded by Matthew in the response from the chief priests and scribes. As religious experts, they were likely fully aware of Balaam’s prophecy of a star coming forth from Jacob signifying a ruler of Israel.^[8] Maybe they mentioned this to Herod, maybe not, regardless the King believed the Magi.

One thing is for certain, Herod had a new fixation: when did this star appear? This one detail was now important – this information would establish a timeline.

Summoning the Magi back to the palace, Herod wanted this second meeting to be in secret. Since word was all over Jerusalem about the Magi’s initial visit to the palace, the secrecy of the second meeting strongly suggests the King had something to hide.

Herod now possessed two details of interest to the Magi – Micah’s prophecy corroborating the birth of a Jewish ruler and the general location of Bethlehem where he could be found. He could use this information as leverage to learn when the star had appeared. During this second meeting, Herod got the information he wanted and the Magi got the information they were seeking.

One other thing Herod wanted… the Magi were asked to report back to him with the exact location of the child under the pretense that he, too, of course could worship the new king. It was a well-known fact, Herod worshiped no one or thing.

In Bethlehem, the Magi found Jesus and worshiped him offering expensive gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. The Magi may have intended to inform Herod of the child’s whereabouts until they were warned in a dream not to go back to Herod. The revelation was contrary to the deal with the King.

Returning home by another route the Magi avoided Jerusalem. Herod soon realized he had been duped and became enraged, then ordered all the children 2 years and younger to be killed in the district of Bethlehem based on the timing of the star’s first appearance ascertained from the Magi.

King Herod was more than capable of such cruelty. Among many murders, he had killed a chief priest, his second wife, her grandfather, her two sons and would soon execute his firstborn son by his first wife.^[9] His cruelty extended even to his death bed when he summoned all the principal men of Judea to Jericho, locked them in the hippodrome, and gave orders to have them killed just to deny them the opportunity to gloat over his death.^[10]

Does Herod’s reactions ring true to the Magi’s declaration that the Messiah, King of the Jews, had been born in Bethlehem?

Updated August 18, 2023.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

REFERENCES:

[1] “Trade between the Romans and the Empires of Asia.” 2000. Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. <http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/silk/hd_silk.htm> “Trade Routes.” Smithsonian|The National Museum of American History. n.d. <http://web.archive.org /web/20160618154742/http://americanhistory.si.edu/numismatics/parthia/frames/pamaec.htm> “46178 -wisemen-magi-jesusbirth.” KFAX AM 1100. photo. n.d. <https://media.swncdn.com/cms/CW/46178-wisemen-magi-jesusbirth.1200w.tn.jpg>
[2] Net.bible.org. Matthew 2:2 Greek text. <http://classic.net.bible.org/verse.php?book=Mat&chapter=2&verse=2> Strong, James, LL.D., S.T.D. The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible. “tarasso <5015>” Thomas Nelson, Inc. 1990.
[3] Flavius. Antiquities of the Jews. Book XV, Ch.VII-VIII; Book XVI, Ch. VIII, XI, IX, XIII, XVI. Book XVII, Ch. I, V. Josephus. Wars. Book I, Ch. XVIII, XXII, XXIV, XXXI, XXXIII. The Complete Works of Josephus. 1850. <http://books.google.com/books?id=e0dAAAAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false> Strabo. Geography. Chapters II-III. n.d. <http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.01.0239:book=1:chapter=2&highlight=magi > <http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.01.0239:book=15:chapter=3&highlight=magi > Diogenes Laertius. Lives of Eminent Philosophers. n.d. <http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.01.0258:book=1:chapter=prologue&highlight=magi > Stillwell, Richard et. al. “Gaza Israel.” The Princeton Encyclopedia of Classical Sites. n.d. <http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.04.0006:entry=gaza&highlight=caravan >
[4] Josephus. Antiquities. Book V, Ch. 1; Book XV, Ch. 1, 3, 6, 7; Book XVI, Ch.VII, VIII, X; Book XVII, Ch. IV, VI. Josephus. Wars. Book I, Ch. XXVI, XXII, XXIV, XXVI, XXX, XXXI. “Herod the Great.” 2017. Livius.org. <http://www.livius.org/articles/person/herod-the-great
[5] Matthew 2:4. NRSV, NKJV, NASB.
[6] NET, NIV, NASB, NRSV, NKJV.
[7] Matthew 2:5. NET, NIV, NASB, NRSV, NKJV.
[8] Maimonides, Moses. Mishneh Torah. “The Law Concerning Moshiach.” Kesser.org. n.d. <http://www.kesser.org/moshiach/rambam.html#SIE> Rich, Tracey R. “Mashiach: The Messiah.” Judaism101. 2011. <http://www.jewfaq.org/mashiach.htm
[9] Josephus. Antiquities. Book XV, Ch. III-VII, IX, XIII, XVI; Book XVI, Ch. XI; Book XVII, Ch. IX.
Josephus. Wars. Book I, Chapter XXII, XXVII, XXXIII.
[10] Josephus. Antiquities. Book XVII, Ch. VI. Josephus. Wars. Book I, Ch. XXXIII.

Herod – Profile of a Cruel & Cunning King

Posted on October 31, 2017November 27, 2023 by K.B. Vogelman

Herod – Profile of a Cruel & Cunning King

Infamous as King of Judea in the Matthew’s Nativity story, Herod was a threat to the lives of the Magi, Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus. It is hard to believe the King of Judea would kill all the baby boys aged 2 years and younger just to ensure he eliminated just one baby.

^{MT 2:16} Then when Herod saw that he had been tricked by the magi, he became very enraged, and sent and slew all the male children who were in Bethlehem and all its vicinity, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the magi.” _(NKJV)

King Herod’s profile, however, is truly that of such a villain. One clue might be that Herod was not himself a Jew – his father was Idumean and his mother Arabian.^[1]

Jewish historian Josephus noted people quickly saw Herod’s harsh personality:

“…they saw that he was a violent and bold man, and very desirous of acting tyrannically.” – Flavius Josephus ^[2]

Even as a ruler, killing many people was in violation of Jewish law. The Sanhedrin put Herod on trial for murder, but High Priest Hyrcanus tipped off the defiant Herod of the pending verdict allowing him to temporarily escape to Damascus.^[3]

Aligning himself with Roman rulers, he was appointed as a military general “for he sold him that post for money.” Marc Antony “by money” named Herod as Tetrarch and such persuasions also helped avert a dangerous dalliance with Queen Cleopatra.^[4]

With more financial influences, Antony,presented Herod to the Roman Senate which voted to make him King of Judea in 40 BC. Authority in Judea had to be taken by force over the course of 3 years with assistance by Antony with Roman Legions.^[5]

Antony’s defeat by Octavius (aka Augustus) caused Herod to believe his days were numbered. With nothing to lose, he boldly presented himself to Caesar Augustus in Rome.

Acknowledging his loyal friendship to Antony, Herod positioned loyalty as a quality that would likewise be valuable to Caesar if he was allowed to pledge his allegiance. The ploy worked and established a lasting relationship with Augustus for the remainder of Herod’s life.^[6]

Allowed more power by Rome than any other king in the provinces, the King was positioned to acquire great wealth and fame. Revenue was acquired through heavy taxes, from booty of war and at least some illicitly.

Josephus wrote that under cover of night, Herod robbed King David’s sepulcher of gold furniture and precious goods. Previously, Hycranus had already robbed the money from the tomb.^[7]

Enhancing the Jewish Temple, Herod is famed for building it back to the grandeur of Solomon. New cities were constructed by Herod including Caesarea with a temple dedicated to Caesar and the city of Herodium was built in honor of himself.^[8]

Exacerbating his offensive actions, Herod inserted Greek inscriptions and architectural features in the enhanced Temple. One such sacrilege was placing Rome’s golden eagle insignia over the Temple gate leading to a future atrocity when Herod had 40 insurrectionists burned alive and marked his final days.^[9]

Trusting no one, Herod was ruthless in quelling any possible threats.^[10]A favored interrogation method was torture on “the rack” with only family members being exempt.

Some of those who met a fate on the rack were identified by Josephus. They included palace eunuchs, body guards, maids, friends of family members, soldiers, and anyone else possibly holding secrets.^[11]

Murders by Herod were standard fare. Family status offered no safe harbor from execution.

Constantly in turmoil, family members of the palace consisted of 10 wives and children. Bearing hatred for one another, it produced rivalries, slanders, lies, backstabbing, and murder conspiracies.^[12]

Second wife of Herod was Mariamne whose 17-year old brother was killed by the King simply because he wanted someone else to be high priest. Former high priest, Hyrcanus, Mariamne’s father and old heir to the throne, was killed by Herod.

Mariamne’s two sons were heirs to the throne. Charged with a murder plot to kill the King, his sons were placed on trial in absentia, convicted and executed by strangulation.

Rebuking Herod, his sister Salome and their mother for complicity in these executions led to Mariamne’s own execution.^[13] Days before Herod died, he executed his son from his first wife, Antipater.^[14]

According to Matthew, Herod’s profile of a cruel and cunning King was true to his reputation. Enraged, Herod believed he had been deceived by the Magi who returned home by a different route while Joseph and Mary with baby Jesus escaped Judea to Egypt.

Unusual for rulers of the era, Herod died a natural death, albeit a most miserable one. Disabled by a terrible groin condition, gangrenous bowels protruded out of his body compelling him to attempt a failed suicide.

Knowing death was imminent, the King devised the most dastardly plan of his reign. Feeling sorry for himself, Herod summoned all the principal men throughout Judea under threat of death to travel to his palace in Jericho.^[15]

Surmising they would all rejoice at his death rather than mourn, the King had a demented plan to murder them. To deprive them of such mockery, Herod locked them inside the hippodrome.

Before his death announcement was made public, the soldiers were to kill these principal men for the purpose of placing all of Judea in a state of mourning. Further, to ensure deep national mourning, one member of each family in Judea was also to be killed.^[16]

Salome, Herod’s sister, was to carry out his last wishes. Such depravity was even too much for the reputedly wicked Salome who aborted the plan telling the soldiers that the King had changed his mind at the last moment and the principal men were released.^[17]

Does the historical profile of a cruel Herod strengthen or diminish the credibility of Matthew Nativity account of killing all male boys 2 years and younger in the Bethlehem area just to ensure he killed baby Jesus?

Updated November 27, 2023.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

REFERENCES:

[1] Herod the Great.” Livius.org. Ed. Jona Lendering. 2017. <http://www.livius.org/articles/person/herod-the-great/?> “Edom (ē`dŏm), Idumaea, or Idumea.” The Free Dictionary. 2017. <http://www.bible-history.com/herod_the_great> Bunson, Matthew. Encyclopedia of the Roman Empire. “Idumaea.” 2002. <https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816045624> Herod the Great.” Livius.org. Ed. Jona Lendering. 2017. <http://www.livius.org/articles/person/herod-the-great/?> “Edom (ē`dŏm), Idumaea, or Idumea.” The Free Dictionary. 2017. <http://www.bible-history.com/herod_the_great> Bunson, Matthew. Encyclopedia of the Roman Empire. “Idumaea.” 2002. <https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816045624> “Herod the Great Biography.” TheFamousPeople. photo. n.d. <https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/herod-the-great-37596.php>
[2] Josephus, Flavius. Antiquities of the Jews. Book XIV, Ch. IX. William Whitson. The Complete Works of Josephus. 1850. Google Books. n.d <http://books.google.com/books?id=e0dAAAAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false> Josephus, Flavius. Wars of the Jews. Book I, Chapter X. William Whitson. The Complete Works of Josephus. 1850. Google Books. n.d. <http://books.google.com/books?id=e0dAAAAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false> “Herod.” Jewish Virtual Library. 2017. <http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/herod> “Herod the Great – Governor of Galilee (47-37 B.C.).” <https://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/Idumean> Bunson, Matthew. Encyclopedia of the Roman Empire. “Judaea.” 2002. <https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816045624>
[3] Josephus. Antiquities. Book XIV, Ch. IX; Book XV, Chapter II. Josephus. Josephus. Wars. Book I, Chapter X. “Herod the Great.” Bible History Online. 2016.
[4] Josephus. Antiquities. Book XIV, Chapters IV, V, IX, XI. Josephus. Wars. Book I, Chapter X.
[5] Josephus. Antiquities. Book XIV, Chapter. XVI, XII-XIV. Josephus. Wars. Book I, Chapters IV, XV – XVII. “Herod I.” Jewish Encyclopedia. 2011. <http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/7598-herod-i>
[6] Josephus. Antiquities. Book XV, Chapters VI-VII. Josephus. Wars. Book I, Chapter XIX-XX. Bunson, Matthew. Encyclopedia of the Roman Empire. “Herod the Great.” 2002. <https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816045624&gt > Bunson, Matthew. Encyclopedia of the Roman Empire. “Jerusalem.” 2002. <https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816045624>
[7] Josephus. Antiquities. Book XVI, Chapter VII. Josephus. Wars. Book I, Chapters XXI, XXV, XXIV. “Herod the Great.” Bible History Online. 2016. <http://www.bible-history.com/herod_the_great> “Herod the Great.” Livius.org.
[8] Josephus. Antiquities. Book XV, Chapter XI. Josephus. Wars. Book I, Chapter XXI. “Herod the Great.” Bible History Online. 2016. <http://www.bible-history.com/herod_the_great> Edersheim, Alfred. The Temple – Its Ministry and Services. 1826-1889. Chapter 1. <http://philologos.org/__eb-ttms/default.htm> Hegg, Tim. “Separating the Most Holy from the Holy: The ‘Veil’ in the Tabernacle and First & Second Temples” Torah Resource. <http://www.torahresource.com/EnglishArticles/Veil%20ETS%20Paper.pdf> “Temple of Jerusalem.” New World Encyclopedia. 2015. <http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Temple_of_Jerusalem> “Herod’s Temple.” Bible-history.com. n.d. <http://www.bible-history.com/herod_the_great/HERODHerods_Temple.htm> “Herod.” Jewish Virtual Library.
[9] Josephus. Antiquities. Book XV, Chapter VIII; Book XVI, Chapter V; Book XVII, Chapters VI; VIII. Josephus. Wars. Book I, Chapter XXI. “Hellenism” Jewish Encyclopedia. 2011. <http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/7535-hellenism> “Asia Minor.” Jewish Encyclopedia. 2011. <http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/2010-asia-minor>
[10] Josephus. Antiquities. Book V, Chapter 1; Book XVI, Ch. VII. Josephus. Wars. Book I, Chapter XXVI.
[11] Josephus. Antiquities. Book XVI, Chapters VIII, X; Book XVII, Chapter IV. Josephus. Wars. Book I, Chapter XXX.
[12] Josephus. Antiquities. Book XVII, Chapter I. Josephus. Wars. Book I, Chapter XII. XXII. “Herod the Great; Herodias.” Livius.org.
[13] Josephus. Antiquities. Book XV, Chapters III-VII, IX, XIII, XVI. Josephus. Wars. Book I, Chapter XXII. Bunson. Encyclopedia of the Roman Empire. “Herod the Great.”
[14] Josephus. Antiquities. Book XVI, Chapter XI; Book XVII, Chapter IX. Josephus. Wars. Book I, Chapter XXVII. XXXIII. Bunson. Encyclopedia of the Roman Empire. “Herod the Great.”
[15] Josephus. Antiquities. Book XVII, Chapter VI.
[16] Josephus. Antiquities. Book XVII, Chapter VI. Josephus. Wars. Book I, Chapter XXXIII.
[17] Josephus. Antiquities. Book XVII, Chapter VII. Josephus. Wars. Book I, Chapter XXXIII.